Passionate feedback ran high this year. Taking on much-debated foods such as steak, breakfast sandwiches and nachos added to my usual flow of Facebook comments, texts and emails—and brought good fodder for this annual selection of great dishes I missed or that hit menus after embarking on a particular taste test.

We still have room to grow. Compared to other northern cities like Cleveland, Pittsburgh and Minneapolis-St. Paul, we’re still lacking a widespread commitment to inventory, staffing, hours of operation and risk-taking.

Is your server or bartender seating customers? You’re in for trouble. Only doing Bloodys on Sunday? That’s a bloody shame. Still using those thick, freebie Bud Light pint glasses (or any pint glass, for that matter)? Throw them in the blue bin. Scattering limp jalapenos on your pizza, nachos or noodles? Time to graduate to any number of other chili peppers.

More places need to add bone marrow and head-on shrimp to their menus, and get with the in-house pickling trend that’s already years old. Lose the Parmesan shakers, though (Ugh!), and make sure customers aren’t seeing more wood than edibles on your charcuterie and cheese board.

Stoneyard American Beer Hall & Grill

This widely celebrated, ancient Italian dish (pronounced porˈketta) features various porky bits and pieces of meat, crispy skin and luxurious fat. Stoneyard’s modern interpretation features butterflied, skinless pork belly stuffed with pork loin, homemade Italian sausage and seasoning—rolled and slow-roasted for six delicious hours. After, chef Nick Sulli slices it into wheels and chops and finishes it on the flat top to order. The succulent pork then meets sautéed, garlicy Swiss chard and extra-sharp provolone on a sourdough baguette. Pair the high-level sandwich with any number of expertly selected beers, and don’t forget to explore the rest of the super solid menu.

Ceviche Del Dia from Rio Tomatlan.(Photo: Vince Press)

Rio Tomatlan

Ceviche, a refreshing seafood salad, has origins in Peru dating back to the 16th century. It never sees heat in the cooking process, but rather the raw fish, shrimp, scallops, octopus or combination therein is marinated (acidulated) in citrus juice until opaque and denaturation “cooking” has occurred. The daily ceviche offering at the fab Rio Tomatlan takes on a multitude of forms, including the mad-good tilapia version I tasted. Flakey white fish meat absorbs the brightness of lime juice, finely diced carrots, jalapenos, garlic and cilantro plated atop a giant round, corn tortilla with pickled onion and cabbage.

Lettuce Wraps from Red Sun Chinese Cuisine.(Photo: Vince Press)

Red Sun Chinese Cuisine

Tucked away behind Sakura Home in Brighton is this sleek Chinese newcomer. It bills itself as authentic, fine Chinese cuisine, and I concur. My earlier lettuce wrap research yielded both ethnic and Americanized offerings. Here, uniformity diced white-meat chicken is modestly seasoned with only oyster sauce, sugar, salt and pepper. Wok-fried with bits of peppers, onions, mushrooms and water chestnuts, it arrives simply plated atop crispy rice noodles. On the side, cold, fresh iceberg lettuce leaves are the receptacles. I suggest some chili oil as an accoutrement, and absolutely start with the hot and sour soup.

26-oz. Ribeye from Portico by Fabio Viviani.(Photo: Vince Press)

Portico by Fabio Viviani

Count on unequaled quality, consistency and service on any trip to celebrity-chef Fabio Viviani’s Portico restaurant at the del Lago Resort & Casino. Many ingredients are native to the FLX region, but the steaks are sourced from acclaimed Buckhead Beef. The hand-selected, choice Angus ribeye, one of three cuts on the current menu, is wet-aged for 28 days. It’s simply seasoned then seared to order in a high-temp broiler. After a naked first taste, don’t be afraid to get saucy with a number of condiments guaranteed to amp up an already stellar flavor. Choose from a velvety béarnaise, gorgonzola fondue, truffle butter or zesty chimichurri. Plenty of thoughtful wines and sides will round out the meal.

Roast Beef Nachos from Angry Goat Pub.(Photo: Vince Press)

Angry Goat Pub

The Goat has been on my hit list since opening in 2013. The Swillburg neighborhood pub has that classic corner-entry door and comfortable day-drinking vibe that a great dive-y joint should. Owner Kevin Barton has taken the menu to heart, building it around elevated snacks, sammies and scratch ingredients. The nachos can be anchored with your choice of avocado, bacon, chicken, pork or roast beef. Standard are tri-colored corn tortilla chips, scallions, tomatoes, fresh jalapenos (yes!) and a house-made white-cheddar beer cheese. We quickly killed a heaping plate of the roast beef nachos; the tender, rare, thinly cut meat was heated to order and strewn about. Hefty stouts sure stood up nicely.